Don't cross the Bat
by Brian368
Summary: A short fic about Batman going up against Bane. I will be borrowing from various sources, including films,animated shows and comic books. This is my first attempt at a fic,so please read and review,feedback is welcome. If you like it I'll upload another chapter.
1. Chapter 1

3AM Gotham

A lone figure stood atop the Gotham Life building, his cape billowing in the chilly night air.

Tonight was the night.

His source had been reluctant to reveal the location of the venom shipment,but after a short and sweet interrogation, he quickly gave up the information. The man was new in Gotham. He had believed, like most, that Batman was an urban myth,a bedtime story gothamites told their children to scare them into being good.

The look of sheer terror on his face when he saw the large dark mass swooping in from the rooftops had been priceless.

Bruce almost respected the mans courage, his defiance. Almost. He had to break his wrist before he got the information he wanted. Most men upped and ran when they ran out of bullets, but not this one. It was from the henchman, named Terry, that he learned of Bane's plans to bring in a massive haul of venom,cocaine and heroin worth several million dollars into Gotham.  
He couldn't have that in his city.

Bane was a dangerous criminal. Remorseless, brutal, efficient and highly intelligent. that and his super steroid compound venom made him one of Batman's most dangerous adversaries. That was why he was here, at the East side docks, waiting for him to turn up so he could take him down. His fists clenched and unclenched as he remembered their last meeting. Bane had broken him. It was humiliating. He had given him a brutal beating, at his home no less. As if that wasn't enough, he broke his back and dumped his unconscious body on the streets for all to see. It had taken him a long time to recover, in more ways than one. His reputation as an invincible man had been shattered by his defeat at the hands of Bane. Sure, he had returned to Gotham with a vengeance after his 'vacation' and the criminals feared him now more than ever, but he had his pride.  
He had a score to settle.  
He would teach Bane what it meant to cross the Bat. Tonight. It all ends tonight.

3.57 AM Gotham Easts side docks

Everything was going according to plan.  
His men had successfully bypassed the border patrol and had the shipment waiting at the docks. The entire haul was worth 12 million dollars, but he wasn't doing this for the money. Ra's al ghul had promised him a place in his organization and the honor of marrying his daughter Talia. He just had to unload the drugs and sell them to Falcone's men. They had been having problems with the Bat and had reached out to the Demons Head for assistance. the venom would be used by Falcone's henchmen to give them an edge over the competition, specifically Batman. If all went well, Bane would finally realize his dreams.

He knew Batman would be here, but he was confident he would break him again. the last time he had thrashed him soundly and made him run off with his tail between his legs. He grinned behind his mask at the anticipation of facing such a formidable opponent once more. Tonight.


	2. Chapter 2

He checked his utility belt for the third time, ensuring he had his smoke pellets and batarangs close at hand. He walked through his plan of attack for the umpteenth time. The great Carthaginian General Hannibal once said a man could take on an army if he had two things: the element of surprise, and initiative.

Speed was key; he would take out the goons quickly and quietly. They were simple street thugs, nothing in the way of formal training, letting their guns do all their work for them. Their reliance on these clumsy weapons was their undoing. He fired his grapple gun and swung low between the roofs of the warehouses. Landing noiselessly on the balls of his feet and tucking into a roll with an ease that spoke of countless hours of practice. The first smoke grenade caught the goons completely unawares. He struck quickly, striking the first man in the head with a genteel roundhouse kick, quickly knocking him out.

"What the hell is that?" one thug rasped, choking on the smoke. He barely registered the dark figure on his left that punched him in the face with the force of a sledgehammer. He was out before he hit the ground. "It's the Bat! Light him up boys!" screamed a man that seemed to be their leader.

A series of flashes and bangs followed as the goons fired blindly into the smoke, unknowingly giving out their positions. Batman was on autopilot, striking at them with speed and skill, not even thinking as he cracked a jaw loose, ducked the wild shots and swept another man from his position atop a shipping container. He landed with a sickening thud, groaned once and was still.

4 down. 3 to go.

3 batarangs sliced through the smoke, their blades coated with a modified tranquilizer developed for horses. Seconds later there was a loud thud indicating the shurikens had found their mark. The smoke thinned and cleared as a light breeze blew through the docks, revealing a tall cloaked figure surrounded by several bodies.

As if on cue, there was a sound of slow, sarcastic clapping. "Excellent work Murcielago! You certainly know how to make an entrance. But that was just the warm up, now it's the main event!" from the shadows Bane emerged. He was just as tall as Batman, but he was broader in the shoulders and chest, his muscles strained against his form fitting black vest. The warehouse echoed with the sound of his heavy combat boots as he strode slowly and purposefully towards Batman.

Idly he wondered why villains always felt the need for these fancy speeches. Then again, Bane clearly considered himself quite the orator, if the neo-anarchist garbage he spouted in their last encounter was anything to go by. No matter, he was no amateur; he wouldn't allow Bane to bait him by playing on his emotions.

Bane lunged at him with surprising speed for a man of his bulk. Batman was faster however, twisting to the side and punching him hard in the gut, following up with a knee to the face and flipping the larger man easily onto his back. Bane got up quickly, adjusting his mask as he approached Batman warily. The last time he had faced an exhausted Batman, ambushed him at his home when he was far from his best, using his superior venom-augmented strength to defeat him. He had suspected Batman would show himself tonight, indeed had welcomed it, a part of him wanted to defeat him in honourable combat. The ease with which he repelled his attack however, made the villain more cautious.

He reached for the switch on his gauntlet and flipped it, releasing the venom into his bloodstream. His muscles swelled, their veins throbbing and pulsating as they grew ever larger. His vest ripped into shreds as his body mass increased. His chest broadened, his legs filled out his large cargo pants, almost bursting them at the seams.

With a primal roar, he lunged at Batman once more, swinging wildly for the most part, but a few of his punches made contact. Batman was in immense pain, taking massive hits but managing to give back some very good shots of his own. Unfortunately, Bane in his venom enhanced state was feeling no pain at all, and his body was sustaining very little damage. Time to initiate the first contingency plan. He slipped on his electrified titanium knuckle dusters and set the charge at 5,000 volts, more than enough to kill a normal man, but on Bane it would just hurt. A lot.

Bane had gained a new level of respect for his opponent. He had never before fought someone for this long, not in his enhanced state. Batman, though he dodged and blocked many strikes, was taking hits that would have knocked down other men, but somehow he just kept coming at him. His punches HURT. He seemed to know just where the soft spots were and how to capitalize on his weaknesses, retaliating with painful strikes charged with electricity. Bruises were beginning to form underneath his mask and across his chest and arms. The venom took most of the sting out of the blows though, and in a few more minutes he would beat the Bat into a bloody pulp.

3 of his ribs were cracked. His breathing was becoming increasingly laboured and blood was running down the jaw line of his cowl from a weeping gash on the side of his head. He had managed to stay on his feet for most of the fight, using his superior speed and agility to keep Bane from getting too close. The pain was intense, with each beat of his heart he felt the blood oozing from the cut and his bruises pulse. The muscles in his arms burned with every strike he landed. He threw a powerful punch into Bane's midsection, eliciting a grunt from the larger man. It was like punching a bag of cement. ''This is not working. 3 more minutes and I'll have nothing left in the tank. Time to initiate contingency plan number 2'' he thought to himself. He ducked a wild haymaker and deftly pulled out a stun grenade from his boot, throwing it straight into Bane's face. There was a blinding flash and Bane screamed in frustration.

He clawed desperately at his face, the smell of burning leather and hair filling his nostrils as he pried the smouldering mask off his face. He blinked, trying to adjust his vision as millions of tiny little lights flashed before his eyes. This was not going according to plan. He felt rather than heard a presence behind him and he whirled around instinctively to confront it. He heard the unmistakable sound of a blade being pulled out of its sheath and the hiss of his venom tubes as they were sliced open. He screamed in pain as the super-steroid gushed out of his body. His massive muscles deflated and collapsed inwards into themselves like wet tissue paper. He collapsed into a heap of skin and bones, groaning as he struggled to lift himself and fell over again. As the venom drained from his blood stream the pain came crashing into him in powerful waves and he bit right through his tongue trying to stifle the screams of agony. At last the pain overwhelmed him and he blacked out.

Batman stood over Banes unconscious body, watching the blood flow from his mouth, his tongue hanging loosely and his mouth wide open in a paroxysm of agony. He had long suspected that he could stand toe to toe against him without his venom, but this was more than he had bargained for. He bent down and checked his pulse and breathing, letting out a small sigh of relief. For a moment he thought he had killed him.

This was the first time he had attempted to sever the tubes and truthfully he hadn't known what to expect, only that Bane would be weaker without his crutch. It was finally over. He had bested him. He had shown him that he was not to be trifled with. He was bloodied and bruised, but it had all been well worth it. He dwelled for a minute, only a minute, on his victory. The sound of sirens in the distance brought him back to the present moment. He looked around the area, noting that all the men were still knocked out. He secured Bane in a strong shipping rope, just in case. He would let the GCPD handle this, Gordon would know how to find him if he needed him.

Then he fired his cable and swung off into the night sky.


End file.
